The best ways to travel around in Slovenia

The natural world is full of wonders, but is there anything more mesmerizing than swimming at night in a sea glowing with bioluminescence? Or spying on flickering fireflies in woodland as they dance through the air? 

Beyond the Netherlands’ biggest and best-known cities, a patchwork of farmland, fields, villages and towns laced by canals, polders, dykes and windmills unfolds across the flat, low-lying Dutch landscapes.

It's hard to resist the allure of Europe, where travelers can find iconic historic sites waiting around seemingly every corner. But the continent's perennial popularity has also meant that many of those best-loved spots are impacted by overcrowding – and the visitor caps, ticketed entry and other restrictions that follow. 

Ryanair, easyJet, and Wizz are Europe's three biggest budget airlines, but the experiences can be quite different.

Much of Challengers’ runtime not spent on a tennis court goes down in a suite and lobby bar at an unnamed luxury New Rochelle hotel. (The film was shot in Boston.) While the techno-pulsing tennis piece of erotica never establishes whether or not these lodgings have a place to play on the premises, there are allusions to sports power couple Tashi and Art Donaldson’s (Zendaya and Mike Faist, respectively) preferred vacation destinations when off the clock. Considering the former’s clinging obsession with the game, and use of the latter as her proxy (she cannot play following an injury), it would be difficult to imagine tennis isn’t somehow involved.

When planning a recent weekend trip from my home in New York City to Washington, D.C., I was delighted by the many transportation options to choose from. But the more I looked at the options, the more I began to wonder which option was the best. With many different ways to get between the two cities — planes, trains and automobiles — I decided to put two of them to the test.

Thanks to a great public transport system, an extensive bike lane network and a growing number of shared-mobility initiatives, getting around Munich is not only easy, it's enjoyable.

Slovenia is an all-year destination. Every season has its appeal, but the best time to visit depends on your interests and priorities.

The Netherlands is a treasure chest of exquisite art-filled cities and towns, canals, windmills and tulip fields, along with shiny-new sustainable urban environments, and glorious natural landscapes, coastlines and islands. While it’s one of Europe’s smaller nations (you can cross the entire country in a handful of hours), choosing where to spend your time takes planning.

You’d be hard-pressed to find a country that packs so much to see and do in such a compact area.

For proof that good things come in small packages, one need only visit Slovenia. In an area half the size of Switzerland, this Central European country packs in breathtaking mountain scenery, lively coastal resorts, fashionable cities, crystal-clear lakes and rivers, and charming, isolated villages.

I’ve been writing about Slovenia for Lonely Planet now for more than a decade.